USA Discounters, Ltd., has agreed to settle claims of unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices raised by 49 states and the District of Columbia. Under the settlement agreement, the company will provide approximately $95.9 million in relief to consumers who were harmed by its sales and collection practices. The company is in bankruptcy, and the settlement was approved by the bankruptcy court on September 29.

According to a press release by the Georgia Attorney General’s office, USA Discounters sold jewelry, consumer electronics, appliances, and furniture, focusing its marketing on servicemembers and veterans. The company, which also operated as USA Living and Fletcher’s Jewelry, sold its merchandise at inflated prices, charged high interest rates, and then engaged in abusive collection practices. These included contacting individuals that were higher in a servicemember’s chain of command and filing all of its collection suits in a few Virginia counties, regardless of where the servicemember lived or where the purchase was made.

write off all outstanding balances on accounts that date from June 1, 2012, or earlier;

give a $100 credit to all other accounts that have not been discharged in bankruptcy;

write off all judgments that were not obtained in a proper state;

reduce all judgments that were obtained in a proper state by 50 percent; and

correct all negative information on consumers’ credit reports;

The company also has agreed to pay a $40 million penalty to the jurisdictions that participated in the settlement. However, that settlement is subordinated to other claims allowed by the bankruptcy court, making its payment questionable.

Email Address
This field is required
Please Type Valid Email Address
Company
This field is required
Country
This field is required

Thank you!

We apologize!

Interested in submitting an article?

First Name
This field is required

Last Name
This field is required

Email Address
This field is required
Please Type Valid Email Address
Area of Expertise
This field is required
Article Idea for Consideration
This field is required

Success

We appologize

Message Us

Thank you for your inquiry! We look forward to connecting with you.

First Name
This field is required

Last Name
This field is required

Email Address
This field is required
Please Type Valid Email Address
Phone Number
This field is required
Company Name
This field is required
Country
This field is required
Topic (Optional)Account or Invoice Number (Optional)Comments (Optional)

Thank you. We will contact you soon!

We apologize, but we failed to receive this message.

Thank You!

Thank You.

Your request has been forwarded to a Wolters Kluwer representative who will contact you shortly!

Information

Note that prices for products fulfilled from Europe are displayed in EUR or GBP depending on your geographic location. If you prefer to purchase products in USD and fulfill from the U.S., please contact us at +1 301-698-7100.